The primary goals of this research focus on the question of how cell-cell signaling controls cellular events such as differentation, growth, and morphogenesis. Specific goals of this research are to (1) genetically identify molecular components of a signaling pathway that specifies cell fate in the Drosophila eye, (2) clone the genes encoding these components for further functional and structural analysis, (3) biochemically characterize the role of each factor in the process of signal transduction. The use of supercomputer resources will be to gain access to current databases that contain DNA and protein sequence information, and to utilize existing programs in order to analyze sequences that will be generated from our research. Access to these programs is important for the goals of this research. The number of service units requested reflects the need for routine use on a daily or weekly basis. I am requesting supercomputer resources because it contains the most up to date and complete databases that I need to access. My local computing environment includes a Macintosh IIci, Classic II, and ethernet port. Since I am located at the University of Pittsburgh at the Department of Biological Sciences, I have access to the University VAX. I have no previous experience with the supercomputer.